This article is part of our Golf Barometer series.
A rather unlikely string of champions emerged while the PGA Tour planted itself in California, with Hudson Swafford, Luke List and Tom Hoge finding the winner's circle. An absolutely star-studded field at TPC Scottsdale might bring that run of long shots to an end this week, though.
In addition to providing several injury updates, we'll take a look at a handful of players who are either trending up or fading in the fantasy value department just over a month into the calendar year.
VALUE RISING
Power has been on an absolute heater with finishes of T9-T14-T3-T15-T4 since the RSM Classic, and he has ascended to a career-best 46th in the Official World Golf Ranking. He's No. 1 in both DraftKings scoring and Birdie-or-Better percentage over his last 12 rounds. Power, who's up to eighth in the FedExCup Standings, ranks fourth in scoring average, 16th in GIR percentage, 18th in birdie rate, 28th in proximity from 50-125 yards and 30th in total driving this season.
Zalatoris' price in both betting and DFS markets began to dip when he placed MC-T54-MC-T37 from the Shriners Children's Open to the DP World Tour Championship Dubai, but he quickly rebounded by tying for sixth at The American Express before earning runner-up honors at the Farmers Insurance Open. The playoff loss to List at Torrey Pines obviously had to sting, but the 25-year-old doesn't seem like he'll be waiting long to contend again for what will be his maiden victory on
A rather unlikely string of champions emerged while the PGA Tour planted itself in California, with Hudson Swafford, Luke List and Tom Hoge finding the winner's circle. An absolutely star-studded field at TPC Scottsdale might bring that run of long shots to an end this week, though.
In addition to providing several injury updates, we'll take a look at a handful of players who are either trending up or fading in the fantasy value department just over a month into the calendar year.
VALUE RISING
Power has been on an absolute heater with finishes of T9-T14-T3-T15-T4 since the RSM Classic, and he has ascended to a career-best 46th in the Official World Golf Ranking. He's No. 1 in both DraftKings scoring and Birdie-or-Better percentage over his last 12 rounds. Power, who's up to eighth in the FedExCup Standings, ranks fourth in scoring average, 16th in GIR percentage, 18th in birdie rate, 28th in proximity from 50-125 yards and 30th in total driving this season.
Zalatoris' price in both betting and DFS markets began to dip when he placed MC-T54-MC-T37 from the Shriners Children's Open to the DP World Tour Championship Dubai, but he quickly rebounded by tying for sixth at The American Express before earning runner-up honors at the Farmers Insurance Open. The playoff loss to List at Torrey Pines obviously had to sting, but the 25-year-old doesn't seem like he'll be waiting long to contend again for what will be his maiden victory on the PGA Tour. He gained a combined 11.6 strokes with his irons at The AmEx and FIO.
Griffin gained a collective 16.8 strokes from tee to green across his last four starts, and he's picked up three straight top-30s, a stretch that includes a T3 at The American Express and a T16 at the just-completed AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. He's 24th on Tour in scoring average, 30th in SG: Approach, 23rd in putting from 10-15 feet and 41st in par-4 efficiency.
VALUE FALLING
Grillo has placed T63 or worse in six consecutive starts dating back to the ZOZO Championship, missing a quartet of cuts along the way. He's just 152nd in the early FedExCup Standings, but there are some underlying signs of hope ahead of this week's WM Phoenix Open. Over his last 12 rounds, Grillo ranks fifth in proximity from 150-175 yards, 17th in Opportunities Gained and 22nd in par-5 efficiency.
Champ was able to advance to the BMW Championship a month after his win at the 3M Open last summer, but he finished MC-MC-T46-MC in four starts to begin this new season and dropped outside the top 100 in the Official World Golf Ranking. He lost an average of 1.9 strokes on approaches per event throughout his last five measured tournaments, and he's 187th in SG: Putting.
Hardy earned his PGA Tour card thanks to 19 top-25s and 34 cuts made in 41 starts during the Korn Ferry Tour's 2020-21 super season, but he currently sits just 22nd among 27 rookies in the FedExCup Standings with four missed cuts and no result better than a T26 eight events into the 2021-22 campaign. His last six outings have been especially concerning, as he went MC-T63-MC-T67-MC-MC from the Butterfield Bermuda Championship to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Hardy is outside the top 150 on Tour in driving accuracy, birdie average and SG: Around-the-Green.
INJURY UPDATE
DeChambeau cited left hand and left hip injuries as the reason for his withdrawal from the Saudi International, implying on social media that he slipped and fell earlier in the week. However, he also withdrew prior to the Sony Open in Hawaii last month due to left wrist soreness, and he missed the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open in his return. He'll likely be listed in the initial field for the Genesis Invitational, but his status should be monitored.
Berger was visibly affected by what appeared to be back pain despite notching a T20 at the Farmers Insurance Open, and his WD prior to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am confirmed a lower-back injury. He's planning to tee it up this week at TPC Scottsdale, but he will be a risky fantasy selection in DFS formats. On the bright side, he's No. 1 among the WMPO field in SG: Approach over his last 12 rounds.
Hoffman found himself in this section in November, when I wrote that "he'll celebrate his 45th birthday in December, but hopefully back issues don't become the norm in 2022." Unfortunately, back issues have been the norm for Hoffman so far in 2022. He withdrew prior to both The American Express and the Farmers Insurance Open before finally teeing it up at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. However, Hoffman lasted only one round in California, as the back injury forced him to WD after an opening-round 70. He hasn't made it through a four-day golf tournament since the ZOZO Championship in late October, but he plans to make another attempt in Phoenix.
